Plasma and tissue fatty acid profiles of growing pigs fed structured or non-structured triacylglycerides containing medium-chain and marine oil fatty acids

Abstract

Twenty-four growing pigs (18.3 kg body weight) were used in 19-day metabolism trial to determine the effect of n-3/medium-chain triacylglyceride (MCT)-structured triacylglyceride on plasma and tissue lipid profiles. Pigs were allotted to four liquid diets, each providing 19.5% protein (dry matter basis) as Na- and Ca-caseinate + soybean protein isolate. Lipid composition (percentage by weight of total lipid) by treatment was as follows: (I) corn oil:soybean oil:MCT oil (40:10:50), (II) MCT oil:menhaden oil (60:40 as structured triacylglyceride), (III) MCT oil:menhaden oil (60:40 non-structured, physical mixture), and (IV) structured triacylglyceride (as in II):safflower oil:canola oil (80:10:10). Blood samples were obtained on days 0, 12, and 19 with liver and muscle samples obtained on day 19. With the exception of arachidonic acid, plasma fatty acid profiles reflected dietary fatty acid profiles. Plasma arachidonic acid percentage was higher (P < 0.05) in pigs consuming diet 1 despite a lower dietary content of this fatty acid relative to diets II, III, and IV. Platelets from pigs consuming diets II or III had lower percentage linoleic and arachidonic acid percentages on day 19 compared with diet 1, which appeared to be compensated for by elevated eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids. Diets II, III, and IV resulted in higher (P < 0.05) percentages of myristic, pentadecenoic, palmitic, palmitoleic, heptadecanoic, heptadecenoic, stearic, linoleic, eicosapentaenoic, docosahexaenoic, and nervonic acids in the liver and elevated (P < 0.05) myristic, palmitic, palmitoleic, stearic, linoleic, and eicosapentaenoic acids in the muscle. Physical form (structured versus non-structured triacylglyceride) did not affect fatty acid profiles.